There is wine and then there is Wine.  When I think of wine it is all the grape varieties that come to mind.  Sometimes I think of muscadine, but generally other grapes such as cabernet or merlot come to mind.  Needless to say I was surprised when I walked into NOLA Tropical Winery and was enticed by all the fruit wines available.  Throw common varieties out of the window and let in Mango, Pineapple, Cherry, and Orange Coffee to mention a few.

The wines are from Florida Orange Groves Winery in St. Petersburg, FL.  So how did Florida wines make their way to New Orleans?  The owners of NOLA Tropical Winery, from Mandeville, LA., were in the Florida Keys and came upon a wine tasting and as they say the rest is history.  The wine store has been in operation for two years and offers nearly 40 different wines for purchase, shipping, or sipping.

That’s right, you can purchase a glass of the wine of your choice to be enjoyed at the bar, browsing the store, or in a shatter proof cup to enjoy on the streets of NOLA.

Besides the NOLA Tropical Winery in the Riverwalk in New Orleans, a new store has been opened in San Antonio, TX.  The wines are also available in numerous locations in Florida.

I tried Midnight Sun which is an orange coffee wine.  The orange wine is aged with fresh roasted coffee beans.  No more Bloody Mary mornings, bring on the Midnight Sun.  The unique flavor is orange with a hint of coffee and would work well with any sweet breakfast – beignets, French toast, etc.  I am a coffee drinker and this wine satisfied the coffee urge.

Chocolate Raspberry Port was offered next.  Being port I expected a heavy wine with a hint of chocolate.  Not at all, the wine was very light in color and weight with a very clean taste.  The chocolate and raspberry were evident yet not overpowering.

The last one tasted was the Black Gold, semi-sweet.  Semi-sweet does not usually fit our category of wines yet this one is a silver medal winner and two other customers were raving about it.  Ok pour a taste – Black Gold was very good.  It is blackberry wine and makes you think of summertime.  For us, it would make a good dessert wine.

Besides wine, there are gifts and wine accessories.  I saw plenty of LSU and Who Dat items that would satisfy most anyone.  There were also “Red Neck” wine glasses available.

One of the most interesting things about this wine store and bar is that they offer Wine Smoothies.  Think of a daiquiri, only better.  I tried the Category 5 Sangria Smoothie which uses Category 5 wine and Sangria smoothie mix.  I was dreaming summertime on the beach!  Category 5 wine is a secret blend of several tropical wines to make a white sangria.

In speaking with Kasey, one of the NOLA Tropical Winery managers, I found out that the wines have fewer sulfites and no tannic acids which mean no headaches or hangovers.  That sounded good to me although I have not tested her theory yet.

What I do know is NOLA Tropical Winery makes me think of the tropics or some Caribbean Island where time stops and the sun always shines.